“Then put my mind at ease and make an appointment. I’ll go with you.”
“Sounds like a date. For now, a little sunlight may actually help.”
I nodded. “I’m done with the food. Let’s go golf. I’m sure the old heads are out there.”
I had lived on the estate since I was five, so I was no longer impressed by the luxury amenities, yet Kannon seemed impressed. She mentioned how our kids would love going to Papa’s house, but with the way I felt about my father, I didn’t know if things would play out that way.
Before we had the chance to start a game, my father and uncles walked over. As usual, each man held a cigar and a glass of dark liquor. They all wore golf clothes, but my dad wore a KangolhatI wanted to knock off his head.
“There’s my beautiful daughter-in-law.” My dad spread his arms wide.
Kannon played into the façade and fell into his embrace. “Happy Birthday, Mr. Sinner.”
“I appreciate it. It’s good to see you, Kannon.”
Uncle Lester snickered into the top of his glass. “I wish I could say the same. You’re a troublemaker.”
“Moi?” Kannon placed her hand on her chest. “I’m not all bad. I just protect my folks, and I love hard.”
My favorite uncle, Luke Sinner, stepped forward, making his presence felt. “Ain’t nothing wrong with a little trouble when it’s this pretty. When are you going to bless my nephew with a baby girl with eyes like yours?”
“What the fuck?” Uncle Lester’s bushy brows crowded in the center of his forehead. “Why are y’all encouraging this bullshit? We don’t fuck with the Blackstones. Why do you think we would want to mix bloodlines?”
“Is that another rule?” I interjected.
“It’s common sense!”
Out the corner of my eye, I saw Kannon flinch at his loud outburst.
“Hey, this isn’t a conversation we need to have right now. If you have a problem withwhoI love, keep it to yourself.”
Uncle Lester stumbled back while releasing a phony laugh. “Oh, shit. Your speech at the casino was real? You aren’t just fucking her.”
My chest swelled with rage as I shuffled in my elder’s direction, but Kannon caught me by my shoulder.
“Baby, let’s just go,” she insisted in a sweet cadence.
“Baby?” Uncle Lester sounded like her echo. “Little girl, does your daddy know you’re running around town with aSinner?”
“Well, my father is out of the country. My daddy is right here.”
My lady’s lighthearted joke made everyone laugh except the angry bird, who kept inciting an argument. Sick of my family member’s poor attempt at bullying, I stepped in front of Kannon, blocking his view of her.
“I don’t know what your issue is, but address all your questions to me. I respect you enough to give you an answer, but I love her enough to check you when you’re talking to her sideways.”
As if I didn’t say a word, Levi’s enabler glared at my father. “Ryan, you really approve of this?”
He shrugged. “I tried to tell him. It is what it is.”
“So you don’t have no control over your son.”
I snarled at the hypocrite. “Yousoworried about me being controlled when you’re blind to the bullshit Levi is into.”
“What the hell are you talking about?”
“Levi’s dumb ass borrowed over a hundred bands from the Blackstones. That’s how I met Kannon in the first place,” I said without going into details.
“Tune.”
